JOHANNESBURG - The African National Congress (ANC) in the Eastern Cape on Sunday slammed former Reserve Bank Governor Tito Mboweni for suggesting that Thabo Mbeki should have groomed his successor before he was replaced as the party’s president in 2007.

Mboweni made the comments at an ANC lecture in Mbeki's honour in Johannesburg on Friday where he also said there was no obvious replacement after the former president left office.

His comments have been largely interpreted as a swipe at the current ANC President Jacob Zuma, who unseated Mbeki at the Polokwane conference in 2007.

“At no stage can a president groom his or her own leader because that on its own is going to create more problems,” said the ANC's Eastern Cape spokesman Mlibo Qoboshiyane.

“Then there will be a personal presidential forecast done.”

Qoboshiyane said Mboweni should have made the comments five years ago rather than right before Mangaung.

“We are now faced with a conference in two weeks to come.

“It is not correct for a person who is unable at times to make it to the leadership to wait for time opportune like this in order to raise serious public discourse issues in relation to an event that is just forthcoming.”